Portsmouth among hardest places to get GP appointment in England
It's after new analysis shows a 'postcode lottery' for GPs in the country
Last updated 12th Oct 2021
Portsmouth is one of the hardest places to get a GP appointment in England, a new study revealed.
Analysis by the House of Commons Library ranks Portsmouth fifth on the list of areas with the highest numbers of inhabitants per GP - with 2,559 inhabitants per GP.
However, health bosses in Portsmouth are reassuring patients over the claims, saying there are enough GPs.
Siobhain McCurrach from patients' group Healthwatch Portsmouth said she can understand people's frustrations at having to wait for an appointment.
She explained: "Whenever you have a health need you will be stressed. It is not meant to be a pleasant experience, so sometimes it is very difficult to process all this complex information at speed when you're stressed."
The stats don't include trainee GPs, and are based on the population in each area rather than the number of registered patients.
The areas with the highest numbers of inhabitants per GP are:
- Fylde and Wyre (2,833)
- Hull (2,761)
- Calderdale (2,606)
- Thurrock (2,592)
- Portsmouth (2,559)
On the other hand, the lowest five are:
- Liverpool (1,614)
- Oxfordshire (1,688)
- Wirral (1,720)
- West Suffolk (1,731)
- East Staffordshire (1,745)
There is on average one GP per 2,038 people across the country indicating a 5% rise since 2015.
England also faces huge disparities across its regions, with some areas seeing an increase of around 40% in people per GP over the same period.
The Liberal Democrats, who commissioned the analysis, have called on the Government to train more GPs.
Liberal Democrat health spokesperson Munira Wilson MP said: "These figures reveal a postcode lottery of care that is leaving people struggling to get GP appointments or waiting weeks to be seen.
"But instead of fixing the GP shortage crisis, the Conservatives are making it worse by failing to train the new doctors we desperately need."
She added: "Families rely on being able to see a GP when they or their children fall sick to get advice, access treatment and get well again. The Government must invest more in our GP practices and train up more doctors, to ensure patients get the fair deal they deserve."
Recent analysis from the BMA shows there are over 1,800 fewer fully qualified, full-time equivalent (FTE) GPs now than there were in 2015.
Between June 2020 and July 2021, the number of GP partners fell by 918.